Hair curler having preformed desiccant insert



March 30, 1965 c. F. REED 3,175,562

HAIR CURLER HAVING PREFORMED DESICCANT INSERT Filed Feb. 28, 1963 C. F. Reed INVENTOR.

5 I BY QC. /M-' ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,175,562 HAIR CURLER HAVING PREFORMED DESICCANT INSERT Charles F. Reed, 6910 Fannin St., Houston 25, Tex. Filed Feb. 28, 1963, Ser. No. 261,758 Claims. (Cl. 132-6?) This invention relates to an improvement useful for setting curls in human hair or the like by the common expedient of tightly wrapping wetted strands ontubular curlers until most or all moisture has left the hair. To reduce personal inconvenience of having a head full of curlers for several hours, the curl setting time is often accelerated by blowing heated air while the head is held under a dryer hood for a boresome wait of up to about fifty minutes, depending on hair thickness.

An object of the present invention is to provide curlers on which wetted strands are to be wrapped and which quickly extract and retain moisture for the settingof curls without the incommodement of heat application and without immobilizing the person.

An additional object of the invention is to provide an eflicient desiccant preform for insertion in a conventional tubular curler and shaped into a light weight core of a length approximately coextensive with the tubular curler and of a cross section to present re-entrant peripheral air pockets between thin-walled webs having large area moisture adsorbing surfaces exposed within the air pockets and terminating outwardly in seating tip portions for centering co-operation with and bearing engagement on the interior of the hollow curler.

A further object is to provide a self supporting elongate core of silica gel on which is to be sleeved a perforated wall of a hollow curler and which solid core is peripherally formed with re-entrant air pockets to communicate with the wall perforations and to increase materially the effective porous core surface area exposed for moisture adsorption and also to minimize desiccant weight but with sufficient desiccant bulk for retention of all moisture desired to be extracted from the ,hair' wrapping.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following specification taken with the accompanying drawing illustrative of a preferred but not necessarily the only embodiment of the invention and in which drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hair curler and core assembly;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the assembly on which a strand of hair has been wrapped; and

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a replaceable core prior to insertion within a tubular curler.

Referring to the drawing, a hollow tube 1 of metal or plastic and whose wall contains many perforations 2 shown in spaced apart rows, is representative of a conventional hair curler. For setting curls in a head of hair, a number of such curlers are employed, each having a strand 3 of wetted hair wrapped tightly around the outside of a tubular curler and held in place as by means of a hairpin 4 having its legs fitted one inside the curler wall and the other overlying and clamping the hair wrapping. For taking up moisture from the wrapped strand, each tubular curler is sleeved over a desiccant core 5.

In this instance the core 5 is a replaceable insert of a self supporting and functionally integral body of nonsoluble silica gel, particularly shaped and arranged for effective co-operation with a conventional tubular curler. Silica gel is formed as a porous solid which adsorbs moisture from air and gas surrounding and contacting the exposed surface, and according to the present invention, a preformed body of silica gel will be molded and preferably extruded in continuous length of special cross section 3,175,562 Patented Mar. 30, 1955 shape and made up into insert units, each of a length substantially coextensive with a given curler in which it is to be nested.

The preformed elongate core 5 is characterized by peripheral re-entrant air pockets 66 of relatively large size bounded by substantial surface areas of relatively thin-walled webs 7--7 angularly related to one another. The several angularly disposed thin webs 7 combine to present a geometric figure in transverse section which in the illustrated embodiment is of substantially star or cruciform shape with solid arms and intervening pockets or troughs 6 projecting longitudinally throughout the length of the core. In transverse dimension, the thin webs 7 project for distances that their terminal outer faces 8 co-operate to provide circumferentially spaced apart bearing contacts at over-all core diameters to correspond with and seat on the interior of a curler tube 1 for centralization of the core in the hollow space of the curler. By production control of such transverse dimensions, the several end seating faces 8 will have a slidable friction bearing fit engagement with the wall of the hollow curler and thus facilitate easy core insertion and removal as well as adequate core retention against accidental displacement during handling and use.

When assembled for use, the large air pockets 6 peripherally of the core will be aligned with and communicate through the perforations 2 in the curler wall for free transfer of moisture from the strand of hair wrapped about the sleeved curler and quick adsorption into the relatively large surface area of the webs 7 exposed within the reentrant pockets 6. In bulk, the silica gel contained in the thin webs of the integral core unit is sufiicient for storing all or practically all moisture to be extracted from a proper size wrapping of hair for setting the curl. Furthermore, the preformed arrangement of the core in thin web shape and angular disposition relative to the curler leaves a large fraction of the hollow curler space unoccupied and subdivides the hollow space into large voids so that the skeletal framework constituting the core adds but little weight to the assembly and the person carrying a set of many curlers in the hair is free from the discomfort and undue burden of heavy loading on the head and neck.

Although the foregoing disclosure deals only with a specific embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications can be made without departing from the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is: a

1. For use with a conventional hair curler of the type having a perforated tubular wall on which wetted hair is to be wrapped, a moisture adsorbing unit for replaceable insertion within a tubular curler wall and comprising a functionally integral self-supporting elongate body of insoluble porous solid and moisture adsorptive material preformed into relatively thin-walled cross shape in transverse section and whose thin walls extend longitudinally of the elongate body and occupy less than half of the hollow interior of the tubular wall, said wall presenting surface areas projected in transverse section in planes angularly related to the tubular wall for full open exposure to unoccupied space within the tubular wall.

2. In combination, a hollow case having a perforated wall on which a wetted strand of hair to be curled may be wrapped and a functionally integral thin-walled core of adsorptive material on which said hollow wall is sleeved, said integral core being a one-piece solid unit preformed to elongate shape which in transverse section differs from the case interior surface and has relatively small peripheral bearing sections in locating abutment with circumferentially spaced apart portions of said interior surface and has relatively large surface areas projecting inwardly from said peripheral bearing sections and angularly spaced relative to the case wall to provide longitudinally elon' a V a) V gated and're-entrant voids vvith which the case wall ner- 'forations communicate and in which voids said large area surfacesiof the thin-walled core are in full open exposure.

3. As a moisture extracting insert to fit inside a conventionaltubular hair vcurler, a preforrned elongate core. 7 of functionally integral desiccant material of substantially; cruciform transverse section throughout its length provid-f ingcangularly related Webs with inter-veningperipheral air spaces therebetween and having peripheral terminal surfaces (to seat on a tubular curler and centralize the core 7 material, said eore being comprised of a skeletal framework ihaving a number of 'circumferentially spaced apart 'and longitudinally disposed thin-walled fins joined to one anotherfalong the longitudinalrcenter line of the core and whose-oppositely facing surfaces in relation to adjacent surfaces'of other fins; diverge outwardly from; said center line and provide longitudinally continuous re-entrant air troughs exterio'rly of the core a'nd'between successive wall surfaces. w

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2. IN COMBINATION, A HOLLOW CASE HAVING A PERFORATED WALL ON WHICH A WETTED STRAND OF HAIR TO BE CURLED MAY BE WRAPPED AND A FUNCTIONALLY INTEGRAL THIN-WALLED CORE OF ADSORPTIVE MATERIAL ON WHICH SAID HOLLOW WALL IS SLEEVED, SAID INTEGRAL CORE BEING A ONE-PIECE SOLID UNIT PERFORMED TO ELONGATE SHAPE WHICH IS TRANSVERSE SECTION DIFFERS FROM THE CASE INTERIOR SURFACE AND HAS RELATIVELY SMALL PERIPHERAL BEARING SECTIONS IN LOCATING ABUTMENT WITH CIRCUM- 